MY TEXT THIS MORNING CONVEYS THE STORY OF GOD'S COVE­NANT WITH ABRAM, AND HIS PROMISE TO MAKE HIM "EXCEEDINGLY NUMEROUS". HERE IS A STORY ABOUT AN OLD MAN WITHOUT ANY CHILDREN BY HIS WIFE, LOOKING TOWARD THE END OF HIS LIFE. YET, GOD IS TELLING HIM THAT HE HAS SOMETHING ELSE IN STORE FOR HIM; THAT HE IS GOING TO MAKE OUT OF ABRAM, AND HIS WIFE SARAI, A GREAT FAMILY THAT WILL BE A BLESSING TO THE WORLD. ABRAM HAS A DIFFICULT TIME BELIEVING ALL THIS. BUT, BECAUSE OF HIS FAITH, AND GOD'S GRACE, ABRAM WAS ABLE TO ACCEPT THIS COVENANT, AND ALLOW GOD TO CHANGE HIS NAME TO ABRAHAM AND HIS WIFE'S NAME TO SARAH. EVEN SO, HE STILL STRUGGLES WITH THE PROMISE OF PARENT- HOOD. AND, THERE WAS MORE. BEFORE ABRAHAM WOULD BE ABLE TO SEE GOD'S PROMISE OF A SON WITH SARAH, FULFILLED, HE WOULD HAVE TO MOVE HIS FAMILY TO A NEW LAND. BUT THEN, MOV­ING US OUTSIDE OUR COMFORT ZONES IS ALWAYS A PART OF GOD'S PLAN.

OUR RESPONSE TO GOD'S EXPECTATIONS OF US IS OFTEN ONE OF DISBELIEF AND RELUCTANCE. I CAN IMAGINE THE FOLLOWING: ABRAHAM SAYING - "LORD, YOU SAY I'M GOING TO DO WHAT AND GO WHERE? HAVE YOU FORGOTTEN HOW OLD I AM? " AND, SARAH SAYING, "ABRA­HAM, YOU ARE NOT DRAGGING ME HALFWAY AROUND THE WORLD AT MY AGE. I HAVE THE HOUSE FIXED-UP JUST LIKE I WANT IT. MY HAIRDRES­SER KNOWS HOW TO DO MY HAIR JUST THE WAY I LIKE IT; I'VE GOT A GOOD NAIL TECH; AND I'M NOT GIVING-UP MY WEEKEND OUTINGS WITH THE GIRLS. SO, IF YOU ARE GOING, YOU ARE GOING BY YOURSELF". DOESN'T THAT SOUND JUST LIKE US GIRLS?

BESIDES DISBELIEF AND RELUCTANCE, YET ANOTHER OF OUR RESPONSES TO GOD'S EXPECTATIONS OF US IS LAUGH- TER. WE NEVER GET TOO OLD, TOO SET IN OUR WAYS, TOO FIXED IN OUR EXPECTATIONS, THAT GOD CANNOT OR WILL NOT SURPRISE US, SHOCK US OR CAUSE US TO LAUGH. LAUGHTER IS OFTEN THE NATURAL HUMAN RESPONSE TO THOSE MOMENTS WHEN WE REALIZE THAT THE FUTURE IS NOT EXCLUSIVELY IN OUR HANDS, THAT GOD IS RESOURCE- FUL, BUSY AND CREATIVE.

THAT IS WHY SARAH LAUGHED WHEN SHE HEARD THE LORD'S PROPHECY THAT AT THE AGE 90 SHE WOULD GIVE BIRTH TO A SON . AS FAR AS SHE WAS CONCERNED, THAT WASN'T EVEN POSSIBLE. CANT YOU SEE SARAH SITTING IN HER ROCKING CHAIR, MAKING MISSION RIB­BONS WITH HER UMW CIRCLE, AS SHE OVERHEARS THE CONVERSATION BE- TWEEN HER HUSBAND AND THE LORD, AND NEARLY FALLING OUT OF HER CHAIR WITH LAUGHTER. IT'S NO WONDER SHE THOUGHT IT AMUS­ING BECAUSE ACCORDING TO WHAT SHE HEARD, SHE WAS ABOUT TO HAVE ONE FOOT IN THE MATER- NITY WARD AND THE OTHER IN THE GRAVE. BUT, SURELY HER'S WAS A CYNICAL LAUGHTER. SHE LAUGHED BECAUSE GOD EXPECTED HER TO BELIEVE IT, AND BECAUSE GOD SEEM­ED TO BELIEVE IT. SHE LAUGHED BECAUSE SHE HALF BELIEVED IT HER­SELF. AND, SHE LAUGHED TO KEEP FROM CRYING. IT WAS AFTER HEAR­ING HER LAUGHTER THAT GOD POSED THE QUESTION TO ABRAHAM, THAT IS THE FOCUS OF OUR MESSAGE TODAY - "IS ANYTHING TOO HARD FOR THE LORD?"

BELIEF IN GOD'S PROMISE OF PARENTHOOD WAS A STRUGGLE FOR BOTH ABRAHAM AND SARAH BECAUSE THEY FOUND IT BEYOND REASON; FOR THEM, IT CONFLICTED WITH REALITY. THE FACTS OF LIFE AS THEY UNDERSTOOD THEM, INDICATED THEY WERE WELL BEYOND CHILDBEARING AGE. THEIR SITUATION MIGHT BE LIKE OUR FINDING LOVED ONES IN NEED OF LONG-TERM CARE AND WONDERING: HOW CAN I FIND THE STRENGTH TO TAKE CARE OF A FAMILY MEMBER WHEN I AM SICK MYSELF? OR AN ELDERLY PERSON WORRY- ING: HOW CAN I RELAX ABOUT MY FUTURE WHEN I AM LIVING ALONE AND WITHOUT FAMILY RELATIONS? SOMETHING LIKE FOR THOSE OF US WITH TROUBLED OR IN TROUBLE CHIL- DREN MUSING: HOW CAN I BELIEVE MY CHILD WILL CHANGE WHEN I'VE BEEN TRYING TO MAKE IT HAPPEN FOR YEARS?

MAYBE IT WOULD BE LIKE THOSE OF US WITH UN- CHURCHED FAM­ILY MEMBERS PONDERING: HOW CAN I BE- LIEVE THAT MY SPOUSE OR SIBLINGS WILL START COMING TO CHURCH WHEN I HAVE BEEN INVITING THEM EVERY SUNDAY FOR YEARS, AND THEY ALWAYS HAVE AN EXCUSE? OR LIKE A CONGREGATION IN NEED OF REDEVELOPMENT THINKING: HOW CAN WE BELIEVE THAT WE WILL MOVE TOWARD MAKING SOME OF THE NEEDED CHANGES WHEN IT SEEMS THAT EVERY TIME WE START TALKING ABOUT DOING SOMETHING - NOTHING HAPPENS? FOR ABRAHAM, THERE WAS DOUBT ABOUT GOD'S PROMISE COMING TRUE JUST LIKE MANY OF US DOUBT THAT GOD CAN MAKE GREAT CHANGES IN OUR LIVES, OR IN THE LIVES OF THOSE AROUND US. SO TO ABRAHAM AND SARAH, GOD'S PROMISE SEEMED FOOLISH AND ABSURD. BUT, IS THERE ANYTHING TOO HARD FOR THE LORD?

OUR STORY HELPS US TO BETTER UNDERSTAND WHAT THE DEMANDS OF LIVING A LIFE BASED ON FAITH CAN BE. BY THIS TIME IN THEIR LIVES, ABRAHAM AND SARAH HAD BE- COME ACCUSTOMED TO THEIR BARREN­NESS; THEY WERE RESIGNED TO THEIR CLOSED FUTURE; THEY HAD ACCEPTED THEIR HOPELESSNESS; LIKE WE HAVE BECOME ACCUSTOM- ED TO LIFE AS WE'VE ALWAYS KNOWN IT; LIKE SOME OF US ARE RESIGNED TO WHAT APPEARS TO BE A LIMITED FUTURE, WITH TOMOR­ROW BEING NO DIFFERENT THAN YESTERDAY, AND NO BETTER THAN TODAY. SOME OF US HAVE DETER- MINED THAT WE CANT ACCOMPLISH GREAT THINGS WITH THE LITTLE ENERGY, TIME OR LIMITED RESOURCES WE HAVE. AS WTH ABRAHAN, THESE KINDS OF BELIEFS ARE A REFLECTION OF HOW LITTLE FAITH WE HAVE IN GOD'S GREAT POWER. AND SO, ABRAHAM AND SARAH PRETTY MUCH REJECT GOD'S PROMISE OF A SON AS NONSENSICAL. AT THIS POINT, THEY, LIKE MANY OF US, ARE NOT FULLY CON­VINCED THAT GOD IS ABLE TO DO WHAT GOD PROMISES. BUT, IS THERE ANYTHING TOO HARD FOR THE LORD?

IN ADDITION, I IMAGINE THEY WEREN'T EVEN SURE THEY WANTED TO CHANGE THEIR LIVES. THE SOCIAL SECURITY AND INVESTMENT CHECKS CAME EACH MONTH THROUGH DIRECT DEPOSIT. THEY EN­JOYED THEIR BUS PASSES, MEDI- CARE, MEDICAID, AND SENIOR DIS­COUNTS ON RX'S AND VARIOUS OTHER PURCHASES. IN THE COLD WINTERS THEY TRAVELED SOUTH TO THE WARMTH OF SUNNY FLORIDA AND, IN THE HOT SUMMERS THEY TRAVELED TO THE COOL BREE- ZES OF THE UPPER PENINSULA. IN FACT, IT COULD BE SAID THAT ABRAHAM AND SARAH LIKED THE PREDICTABILITY OF THEIR LIVES. THEY HAD RE­SIGNED THEMSELVES TO THEIR CLOSED, BARREN FUTURE. THEY WERE PROBABLY THINKING, "LORD, WE HAVE NEVER DONE IT THIS WAY BEFORE, AND WE ARE NOT ABOUT TO START NOW." AND, BECAUSE THEY HAD ADJUSTED TO THINGS AS THEY WERE, THEY WERE WILLING TO ACCEPT THEIR LIMITED LIFE AS NORMAL. IS'NT THAT WHAT WE DO?

ABRAHAM AND SARAH PROBABLY DIDN'T REALLY WANT ANYTHING NEW. THEY PROBABLY JUST WANTED TO KEEP THE OLD WAY. WHY? THAT'S OBVIOUS, ISN'T IT? THE OLD IS PREDICTABLE, THE OLD IS FAMILIAR, AND THE OLD IS REAS- SURING. ON THE OTHER HAND, THE NEW IS AN UNKNOWN ENTITY - STRANGE, THREATENING, AND POSSIBLY DIFFICULT. BUT, IS THERE ANYTHING TOO DIFICULT WITH THE LORD ON OUR SIDE?

TO ABRAHAM THERE WERE MANY THINGS THAT SEEMED IMPOSSI­BLE REGARDING GOD'S PROMISE TO HIM. THERE WERE SO MANY OB­STACLES THAT SEEMED TO STAND IN THE WAY FOR THE PROMISE OF THE COVENANT TO EVER TAKE PLACE. FROM HIS LIMITED POINT OF VIEW THERE WAS NO WAY POSSIBLE THIS PROMISE COULD EVER BE FULFILLED. THAT IS WHY GOD ASKED THAT "RIGHT TO THE HEART OF THE MATTER" QUESTION, IS ANYTHING TO HARD FOR THE LORD?

IF OUR ANSWER TO THIS QUESTION IS YES, THEN IT MEANS WE BE­LIEVE THAT NOT EVEN GOD CAN CHANGE OUR SITUATIONS. AND, IF WE BELIEVE THERE ARE THINGS IN OUR LIFE THAT ARE IMPOSSIBLE FOR GOD TO CHANGE, THEN LIFE AS WE KNOW IT IS A CLOSED UNIVERSE WHERE GOD IS NOT PRESENT, AND THERE IS NO ROOM FOR HOPE. IF, ON THE OTHER HAND, WE BELIEVE THAT "NOTHING IS TOO HARD FOR GOD", THEN LIFE IS FULL OF ENDLESS POSSIBILITIES. THERE IS NO DOOR THAT CANNOT BE OPENED, NO MOUNTAIN TOO HIGH AND NO VALLEY TOO LOW THAT WITH GOD WE CANNOT OVERCOME; NO THINGS IN LIFE THAT ARE BEYOND GOD'S POWER TO AFFECT. DO YOU BELIEVE THAT THERE IS NOTHING TOO HARD FOR THE LORD?

BUT, EVEN AFTER LAUGHING AT GOD'S PROMISE, ABRA- HAM AND SARAH DECIDE TO MAKE A VENTURE INTO THE UN- KNOWN. THEIR DE­CISION MAY APPEAR TO MANY AS UNREA- SONABLE, AND BORDERING UPON FOOLISHNESS. BUT, IN THE LONG RUN, THEIR FAITH AND WILL­INGNESS TO TRUST GOD EVEN IN THE FACE OF EVIDENCE THAT IS BAFFLING, AMBIG- UOUS, AND CONTRADICTORY IS REWARDED. WHAT GREAT JOY! SARAH CONCEIVES AND ISAAC IS BORN. I CAN VISUA -LIZE HOW SHE WALKED INTO THE TUESDAY EVENING UMW MEET­ING WITH HER BASSINET CONTAINING LITTLE ISAAC. AND HOW ALL THE LADIES HAD A GREAT TIME LAUGHING WITH SARAH, AND LAUGHING AT GOD'S ABILITY TO WORK WONDERS WHERE ALL SEEMED LOST. THEIRS IS NOT THE CYNICAL LAUGHTER OF EARLIER, BUT IS THE LAUGHTER THAT COMES AS THE RESULT OF THE HAPPY UNEXPECTED INTRUSIONS OF A LIVING AND LOVING GOD INTO OUR LIVES. THIS IS THE KIND OF LAUGHTER WE HAVE WHEN WE REALIZE THAT GOD'S PROMISES ARE REAL, AND THE JOKE IS ON US. THIS IS THE KIND OF LAUGHTER WE HAVE WHEN WE FINALLY REALIZE THAT NOTHING IS IMPOSSIBLE FOR THOSE WHO LOVE THE LORD AND ARE CALLED ACCORDING TO HIS PUR- POSES. AND, THAT WE CAN DO ALL THINGS THROUGH CHRIST WHO STRENGTHENS US. IS THERE A REASON FOR THAT KIND OF LAUGHTER IN YOUR LIFE? ON SUNDAY, MARCH 4TH, 2012, DO YOU BELIEVE THAT THERE IS NOTHING TOO HARD FOR GOD OR IS THE LAUGH ON YOU?

PRAYER

EVER-CALLING GOD, IN JESUS CHRIST YOU UNDERSTAND OUR HUMANITY AND OUR GREAT HOPES TO BE FAITHFUL DISCIPLES. YOU REALIZE OUR TEMPTATIONS, YOU COMPRE-HEND OUR DOUBTS, YOU KNOW OUR FRUSTRATIONS, YOU HAVE EMPATHY WITH OUR DISAPPOINTMENTS IN OURSELVES AND OTHERS. HELP US TO BE DISCIPLES WHO KNOW THAT YOUR WAY IS NOT A SHORTCUT TO FAME OR POPULARITY OR PROSPERITY. YOURS IS THE WAY OF THE CROSS, AND YOU ARE THE ONE WHO CALLS US TO FOLLOW PATHS OTHERWISE UNCHOSEN. MAY WE BE YOUR AMBASSADORS AS THE CHURCH GOES TO TROUBLED PLACES AND MINISTERS AMONG THOSE IN NEED, AND STRIVES TO BRING THE COMPASSION AND JUSTICE OF YOUR REALM INTO THE WORLD YOU SO LOVE IN CHRIST. SURPRISE US WITH YOUR GRACE, KEEP US FAITH- FUL, AND REMIND US ALWAYS THAT NOTHING WE DO IN YOUR NAME IS EVER IN VAIN. IN CHRIST'S NAME WE PRAY. AMEN.